Systems and methods for authentication of customers

ABSTRACT

A computer-implemented method and system for authenticating identification of a customer during interaction with a company representative. Data is received and stored relating to the customer at a computer. The data includes one or more identification attributes associated with the customer and one or more authentication data attributes associated with the customer. An interaction is commenced between the customer and the company representative. Captured is one or more identification attributes and authentication data attributes relating to customer from the interaction between the customer and the company representative. The customer is identified by matching a captured identification attribute with a stored identification attribute. The customer is authenticated by matching a captured authentication data attribute with a like stored authentication data attribute associated with the identified customer.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority to U.S. Patent Application Ser. No.62/050,886 filed Sep. 16, 2015 which is incorporated herein by referencein its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present technology relates to improving customer interactions, andmore particularly, to establishing rapport between customer servicerepresentatives by alleviating a need for obtrusive authentication ofthe customer during telephone interaction.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Customer service representatives are often responsible for a widevariety of tasks. In addition to being proficient in accomplishingparticular tasks like updating addresses or other status changes,providing new or updated quotes, responding to billing inquiries,cancelling and renewing services, and entering data related to thecustomer, the customer service representative is expected to be morethan cordial, pleasant, engaging and generally charming.

To support customer service representatives, each has a workstation. Thecustomer service representative relies on their workstation to providethem with information quickly in order to maintain conversational flowwith the customer. Despite tremendous computing power and the latesttechnology, delays are inevitably introduced by the support technology.Additional delays are also created by the customer servicerepresentative, whether it be the customer service representative'snatural speech cadence, thought process, deliberation over a selection,or simple consideration of what to say or type next.

When dealing with financial products and services, further delay is alsointroduced because the customer service representative must authenticatethe customer. It is often important to conduct advanced authenticationto prevent fraud and theft. In addition to taking the necessaryinformation to identify the customer, commonly a series of predeterminedquestions is used to affirmatively authenticate the customer. Evenasking fairly simple questions such as one's social security number ormother's maiden name, introduces significant delay and impedes thecustomer service representatives ability to quickly and efficientlyassist the customer. Efficiency is very important to establishing thedesired rapport.

Still further, customer service representatives are expected to mine thecustomer database for opportunities to make new and additional sales ofproducts and services, often referred to as “upselling.” Upselling iscritical because it expands revenue with a targeted group, which ispredisposed to using the company for goods and services (e.g., existingcustomers or potential customers who have already reached out to thecompany).

It is understandable that with all that a customer servicerepresentative is expected to juggle, that presenting a warm, confident,informed face to the customer is challenging. Yet, this is exactly whatis expected. Thus, a need exists to provide support to the customerservice representatives to allow them to represent the company as wellas possible.

In response to these challenges, several approaches have been developedto improve customer service. U.S. Pat. No. 8,588,395, issued on Nov. 19,2013, collects data from a plurality of calls to generate reports. Uponreview of the reports, alerts are generated to identify poorlyperforming units. Other attempts at improvement look to remove, or atleast minimize, the role of the customer service representative herself.For example, U.S. PG Pub. No. 2012/0076283, published on Mar. 29, 2012,creates a smart chat room in which customers can be directed to anappropriate Frequently Asked Question (FAQ) or particular display thatmay assist the customer without interaction with a customer servicerepresentative.

Further, U.S. Pat. No. 6,601,762, issued on Aug. 5, 2003, creates apoint-of-sale (POS) voice authentication transaction system. The POSsystem, however, must have a pre-recorded voice message from thecustomer for comparison to the live speech. This is very similar to thesecurity questions noted above in that the customer must complete apreliminary set up in order for the system to work. Additionally, duringauthentication, the customer must be asked to repeat the pre-recordedmessage and then repeat it, which interrupts the customer interactionflow. U.S. Pat. No. 8,483,365, issued on Jul. 9, 2013, similarlytediously requires multiple repetitions of voiced phrases. Still otherattempts utilize a central authority that register customers andprovides authentication certificates, which must then be passed from thecustomer to the provider of goods and services (see U.S. PG Pub. No.2008/0181379 published on Jul. 31, 2008).

Referral from one customer service representative to another forspecialized services is often desirable. In such a case, traditionalcall centers have no ability to facilitate hand-off between customerservice representatives beyond placing the customer on hold while thefirst representative tries to fill in the second representative. Thisnot only yields often poor and inconsistent results, but createsdissatisfaction among the customers on hold and after reconnection whendetails and information already presented must be discussed again.

In view of the above, there is an unmet need to provide companies, suchas insurance companies, the ability to streamline interactions withtheir customers even when performing advanced authentication of thecustomer is helpful to establishing rapport. The authentication remainsvalid or is re-performed as necessary when more than one customerservice representative speak with a customer during a single or multiplecalls.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The purpose and advantages of the below described illustratedembodiments will be set forth in and apparent from the description thatfollows. Additional advantages of the illustrated embodiments will berealized and attained by the devices, systems and methods particularlypointed out in the written description and claims hereof, as well asfrom the appended drawings.

To achieve these and other advantages and in accordance with the purposeof the illustrated embodiments, in one aspect, a computer-implementedmethod and system for authenticating identification of a customer duringinteraction with a company representative is described in which data isreceived and stored relating to the customer at a computer. The dataincludes one or more identification attributes associated with thecustomer and one or more authentication data attributes associated withthe customer. An interaction is commenced between the customer and thecompany representative. Captured is one or more identificationattributes and authentication data attributes relating to customer fromthe interaction between the customer and the company representative. Thecustomer is identified by matching a captured identification attributewith a stored identification attribute. The customer is authenticated bymatching a captured authentication data attribute with a like storedauthentication data attribute associated with the identified customer.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

So that those having ordinary skill in the art, to which the presentembodiments pertain, will more readily understand how to employ thenovel system and methods, certain illustrated embodiments thereof willbe described in detail herein-below with reference to the drawings,wherein:

FIG. 1 is an exemplary system for streamlining customer interactions;and

FIG. 2 is a flow chart illustrating an exemplary method of utilizing theexemplary embodiment of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 is an illustration of an embodiment of a computing device.

FIG. 4 is an exemplary screen shot for review by and interaction with acustomer service representative in accordance with the subjecttechnology.

FIG. 5A is another exemplary screen shot for review by and interactionwith a customer service representative in accordance with the subjecttechnology.

FIG. 6A is still another exemplary screen shot for review by andinteraction with a customer service representative in accordance withthe subject technology.

FIGS. 5B-D are views of portions of the screen shot of FIG. 5A.

FIGS. 6B-F are views of portions of the screen shot of FIG. 6A.

FIG. 7 is still another exemplary screen shot for review by andinteraction with a customer service representative in accordance withthe subject technology.

FIG. 8 is still another exemplary screen shot for review by andinteraction with a customer service representative in accordance withthe subject technology.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF CERTAIN EMBODIMENTS

The below illustrated embodiments are directed to streamlining andimproving customer interactions based on analysis of all available datarelevant to the customer. It is to be appreciated the below illustratedembodiments are not limited in any way to what is shown, as theillustrated embodiments described below are merely exemplary of theinvention, which can be embodied in various forms, as appreciated by oneskilled in the art. Therefore, it is to be understood that anystructural and functional details disclosed herein are not to beinterpreted as limiting, but merely as a basis for the claims and as arepresentative for teaching one skilled in the art to variously employthe certain illustrated embodiments. Also, the flow charts and methodsdescribed herein do not imply either required steps or a required orderto the steps, and the illustrated embodiments and processes may beimplemented in any order and/or combination that is practicable.

Unless defined otherwise, all technical and scientific terms used hereinhave the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill inthe art relating to the below illustrated embodiments. Although anymethods and materials similar or equivalent to those described hereincan also be used in the practice or testing of the below illustratedembodiments, exemplary methods and materials are now described.

It must be noted that as used herein and in the appended claims, thesingular forms “a”, “an,” and “the” include plural referents unless thecontext clearly dictates otherwise. Thus, for example, reference to “astimulus” includes a plurality of such stimuli and reference to “thesignal” includes reference to one or more signals and equivalentsthereof known to those skilled in the art.

By way of example, the following description relates to a company thatprovides a broad array of financial services such as insurance, banking,health insurance, tax advice, investments, automobile buying andfinancing, retirement planning, consumer shopping, real estate and thelike. As used herein, the term “insurance” refers to a contract betweenan insurer, also known as an insurance company, and an insured, alsoknown as a policyholder, in which the insurer agrees to indemnify theinsured for specified losses, costs, or damage on specified terms andconditions in exchange of a certain premium amount paid by the insured.In a typical situation, when the insured suffers some loss for whichhe/she may have insurance, the insured makes an insurance claim torequest payment for the loss. It is to be appreciated for the purpose ofthe embodiments illustrated herein, the insurance policy is not to beunderstood to be limited to a residential or homeowners insurancepolicy, but can be for a commercial, umbrella, and other insurancepolicies known by those skilled in the art.

As used herein, the term “insurance policy” may encompass a warranty orother contract for the repair, service, or maintenance of insuredproperty. As used herein, “insured property” means a dwelling, otherbuildings or structures, personal property, or business property, aswell as the premises on which these are located, some or all which maybe covered by an insurance policy.

It is to be appreciated the certain embodiments described herein may beutilized in conjunction with a software algorithm, program or coderesiding on computer useable medium having control logic for enablingexecution on a machine having a computer processor. The machinetypically includes memory storage configured to provide output fromexecution of the computer algorithm or program. As used herein, the term“software” is meant to be synonymous with any code or program that canbe executed by a processor of a host computer, regardless of whether theimplementation is in hardware, firmware or as a software computerproduct available on a disc, a memory storage device, or for downloadfrom a remote machine. The embodiments described herein include suchsoftware to implement the equations, relationships and algorithmsdescribed above. One skilled in the art will appreciate further featuresand advantages of the certain embodiments described herein. Thus thecertain embodiments are not to be understood to be limited by what hasbeen particularly shown and described, except as indicated by theappended claims.

Referring to FIG. 1, a hardware diagram depicting a system 100 in whichthe processes described herein can be executed is provided for exemplarypurposes. In one embodiment, system 100 includes a server 200communicating with a representative computing device 90 across a network50 with communication channels 75. The server 200 stores personalinformation 202 about customers, recent activities data 204 related tothe customers, business rules 206 to be applied as described herein,conversation plans 208 that are generated, a services database 210,which includes information about various services a company may offer,and an authentication module 212 that performs customer authentication.

For exemplary purposes only, personal information 202 about customersmay include the customer's legal name, what name they preferred to becalled by, names of their family members (including former familymembers such as ex-spouses), ages for the customer and their family, howthe customer is eligible for coverage (if applicable). The personalinformation 202 includes information necessary to perform authenticationof the customer as described herein. The authentication information mayinclude one or more voice samples, caller identification numbers,hardware-specific data related to one or more mobile devices associatedwith the customer, media access control (MAC) address, and the like. Theauthentication module 212 includes the logic and processing capabilitynecessary to accomplish the authentication of the customer.

Recent activities data 204 by the customer may include the customerenrolling in a service that the company offers (e.g., mortgage,automobile loan, auto/home/life insurance, banking, and credit card),changing the settings of a service already enrolled in (e.g., raisingthe deductible and lowering the premium of an auto insurance policy),calling the company to ask a question and/or discuss a topic,researching information on the company's website, and/or researchinginformation on the internet and later visiting the company's website(e.g., wherein the company's servers may glean past Internet activitiesbased on “cookies”).

Business rules 206 may include associations, correlations and/orcausations between (1) information and/or past activities and (2) futureactivities. For example, a business rule may reflect the relationshipbetween (1) a child attaining the age of 15 and (2) adding anothermember to an auto insurance policy. In another example, a business rulemay associate (1) browsing the company's website searching for lifeinsurance information and (2) the subsequent phone call to the companybeing a request to (2a) enroll in a life insurance policy, or (2b)change the settings of an existing life insurance policy. In yet anotherexample, a business rule may associate (1) a customer attainingretirement age and (2) the customer lowering their life insurancepremium to a lower amount.

In one embodiment, a conversation plan 208 may include a series oftopics about which the company's representative will suggest discussingwith the customer. For example, if the customer is about to turn 65years old and has a child about to turn 15 years old, the conversationplan may include the representative first suggesting to talk aboutadding the child to an auto insurance policy, and subsequentlydiscussing if the customer wants to amend their life insurance policy.In yet another example, a conversation plan may include asking abouteach service the customer is enrolled in with reference being made tothe most recent event associated with each service (e.g., the firsttopic may be asking if the customer wants to amend their recently addedhome insurance policy, and the second topic may be asking the customerabout the additional member she added to her auto insurance policy ayear ago).

The services database 210 includes information related to the customer'senrollment in any services that are offered by the company. Suchinformation may include the details of the customer's policies, thedetails of previous settings to current policies, and the details of thesettings to previous policies the customer has enrolled in. For example,if a company offers credit card services, mortgage services, bankingservices, automobile loan services, investment services, insuranceservices and housing services, the services database may includeinformation related to their customers' involvement with those services.

The authentication module 212 includes all the necessary programming andinformation to perform enhanced authentication. The enhancedauthentication module 212 may include voice or other biometric filesrelated to each customer along with software routines for determining ifcaptured information matches the information on file.

Turning now to FIG. 2, illustrated therein is an exemplary embodiment ofcomputing device 200 for use in the system 100. Such a computing device200 is exemplary of how a server 200 and even how a representativecomputing device 90 may be configured. The following discussion isprincipally with respect to the computing device 200 when functioning asthe server 200. The server 200 preferably includes bus 205, over whichintra-device communications travel. A processor 210, interface device220, network device 230, and memory 240 all communication across the bus205. The server 200 also preferably includes RAM 242 and hard drive 245for storage. The computing device 200 may also include a display system,such as a monitor (not shown), particularly when used as arepresentative computing device 90.

The term “module”/“engine” is used herein to denote a functionaloperation that may be embodied either as a stand-alone component or asan integrated configuration of a plurality of subordinate components.Thus, “modules”/“engines” may be implemented as a single module or as aplurality of modules that operate in cooperation with one another.Moreover, although “modules”/“engines” may be described herein as beingimplemented as software, they could be implemented in any of hardware(e.g. electronic circuitry), firmware, software, or a combinationthereof.

Memory 240 is a computer-readable medium encoded with a computerprogram. Memory 240 stores data and instructions that are readable andexecutable by processor 310 for controlling the operation of processor210. Memory 240 may be implemented in random access memory 242 (RAM), anon-transitory computer readable medium, volatile or non-volatilememory, solid state storage devices, magnetic devices, hard drive 245,database 246, a read only memory (ROM), or a combination thereof.

Processor 210 is an electronic device configured of logic circuitry thatresponds to and executes instructions. Processor 210 outputs results ofan execution of the methods described herein. Alternatively, processor210 could direct the output to a remote device (not shown) via network50.

It is to be further appreciated that computer networks, upon which theembodiments described herein my interact and/or function, can include alocal area network (LAN) and a wide area network (WAN), other networkssuch as a personal area network (PAN), or any combination thereof. Suchnetworking environments are commonplace in offices, enterprise-widecomputer networks, intranets, and the Internet. For instance, when usedin a LAN networking environment, the system 100 is connected to the LANthrough a network interface or adapter (not shown). When used in a WANnetworking environment, the computing system environment typicallyincludes a modem or other means for establishing communications over theWAN, such as the Internet. The modem, which may be internal or external,may be connected to a system bus via a user input interface, or viaanother appropriate mechanism. In a networked environment, programmodules depicted relative to the system 100, or portions thereof, may bestored in a remote memory storage device such as storage medium. It isto be appreciated that the illustrated network connections of FIG. 1 areexemplary and other means of establishing a communications link betweenmultiple computers may be used.

It should be understood that computing devices 200 each generallyinclude at least one processor, at least one interface, and at least onememory device coupled via buses. Computing devices 200 may be capable ofbeing coupled together, coupled to peripheral devices, and input/outputdevices. Computing devices 200 are represented in the drawings asstandalone devices, but are not limited to such. Each can be coupled toother devices in a distributed processing environment.

Turning to FIG. 3, illustrated therein is an exemplary process 1000 ofutilizing system 100. Starting at step 1001, interaction with a customerbegins and an integrated desktop is displayed on the workstationcomputer 90 of a representative of a company. The interaction may be anonline chat, incoming call by the customer, or the customer servicerepresentative being prompted to call the customer and the like. Theintegrated desktop is a software application or module running in thesystem 100 that presents information on the workstation computer 90. Theintegrated desktop creates and presents a plurality of screens relatedto the customer for review by the customer service representative.

The integrated desktop includes customer information about customers,both current, past and potential. When presenting information to thecustomer service representative, a customer dashboard is created. Thecustomer dashboard can change from screen to screen but continuallyprovides information related to the customer to facilitate the customerservice representative establishing rapport with the customer. Byestablishing a good interaction with the customer, the customer willtell their story. As a result, the customer service representative gainsan understanding of the customer's needs, both recognized andunrecognized, to provide excellent service and advantageous upselling.

Upon receiving the call from the customer, the system 100 utilizes theauthentication module 212 to verify the customer's identity and preventfraud. The customer is initially asked typical information such as theirname and/or customer number. Based on the initial information, the datarelevant to the customer can be found in the personal information 202and other locations.

Once the initial customer information is acquired, the system 100 canpresent an initial screen shot 400 for review by the customer servicerepresentative as shown in FIG. 4. The screen shot 400 includes severalcomponents of the customer dashboard that can be used, modified, andre-used with other components not shown. One or more portions of thecustomer dashboard are likely to remain in view of the customer servicerepresentative through several screen changes.

The screen shot 400 includes a header portion 402 for a customer namedTom Thompson. The header portion 402 presents basic information right atthe top of the screen shot 400 for a clean and simple view of thecustomer. The header portion 402 includes name, title and authenticationstatus (i.e., high risk authenticated). In this example, the headerportion 402 also includes that Mr. Thompson has been a customer of thecompany for 23 years, his date of birth, and age. As this companyrequires certain criteria to be met in order to utilize their goods andservices, the eligibility criteria of Mr. Thompson is also noted, namelyeligibility by, at one time, being the dependent child of an eligibleperson.

The header portion 402 also includes a current status of the customer,namely that Mr. Thompson is on the company's Web site usaa.com. Moredetailed information regarding the status of browsing a renters quote isalso provided. In the event contact has not yet been established bytelephone, the customer service representative can click within theheader portion 402 to call the customer. Or, if interaction isterminated, the customer service representative can click within theheader portion 402 to close the screen shot 400 and move on to the nextinteraction.

The screen shot 400 has a notices portion 404 for presenting salientinformation like topics to avoid (e.g., former spouse) as well as theability to create additional entries in this section for futurereference. A personal profile portion 406 includes contact and systeminformation (e.g., notification and security preferences) along with theability to perform typical access related tasks (e.g., password and PINchanges) for Mr. Thompson. A household portion 408 includes pictoralidentification of the household members along with an ability to updatethe household. The screen shot 400 also includes a recent activityportion 410 that allows the customer service representative to scrollthrough the activity of Mr. Thompson in reverse chronological order.

As can be seen, the portions 402, 404, 406, 408, 410 allow the customerservice representative to establish baseline knowledge about thecustomer quickly and easily. In the event that the interaction is bytelephone, normal and customary greeting is accomplished to beginbuilding rapport between the customer and customer servicerepresentative. A customer products portion 412 provides a view ofcustomer accounts including any accounts related to the household. Alife plan portion 414 graphically illustrates various goals identifiedfor the customer. By pairing the customer products portion 412 with thelife plan portion 414, the customer service representative has a broadoverview of the Mr. Thompson's financial status and outlook. As aresult, the customer service representative can review the customer'slife situation to identify enhanced product and service offerings or newofferings (i.e., upselling) based on recognized needs even if thecustomer does not recognize the need.

Still referring to FIG. 4, the screen shot 400 includes a scratchpadnotes portion 416. In the scratchpad notes portion 416, the customerservice representative can prepare additional notes in paragraph formfor review in subsequent interactions.

As can be seen, the screen shot 400 provides conversational, status,product and other information related to the customer, Mr. Thompson. Byreviewing the information of the screen shot 400, the customer servicerepresentative is better able to have a productive, efficient and smoothdialogue with the customer. It is envisioned that the customer servicerepresentative gleans available cues from the screen shot 400 to informher expectations for the upcoming interaction with the customer. As aresult, rapport is maintained and improved.

Further, the same screen shot 400 can be presented to subsequentcustomer service representatives who may be called upon to interact withthe customer due to having a specialty or higher experience level. Thesubsequent customer service representative can again quickly and easilyreview the personal information about the customer, the customer'sfamily's information, the customer's age, recent activities the customerhas engaged in (e.g., withdrawal of $9,000 from an emergency fund, afixed rate loan of $40,000), status of the phone call (e.g., if thecustomer has been transferred and how many times, how long the customerhas been on hold, how long the call has lasted), an indication of thecustomer's preferred nickname (e.g., “Tommy” instead of “Thomas”) andthe like to establish rapport. Additionally, the screen shot 400 mayinclude a button to accomplish the transfer of the call within thecompany.

While screenshot 400 is being presented to the customer servicerepresentative, the system 100 can perform enhanced authentication usingthe authentication module 212 without disturbing the conversation flow.In one embodiment, the personal information 102 includes one or morevoice samples captured during previous verified interaction with thecustomer. The system 100 captures additional live voice samples forcomparison. If the speaker matches, enhanced authentication is completeand the system 100 proceeds. It is envisioned that the recorded and livevoice samples are captured without interruption in the conversationhowever it is not required.

In an alternative embodiment, the system 100 uses caller identificationnumbers acquired from the current call for comparison against a calleridentification number stored in the personal information 202. If theauthentication module 212 determines that the caller identificationnumbers match, then enhanced authentication is verified withoutinterrupting the conversation. The caller identification numberauthentication may be instead of or in addition to the other enhancedauthentication techniques disclosed herein.

In another embodiment, the authentication module 212 captureshardware-specific data related to one or more mobile devices associatedwith the customer. The hardware-specific data may include a deviceserial number, network account information, the version of softwarerunning on a mobile phone, type of mobile phone, or other informationassociated with land lines and the like. By again finding matchinginformation, the system 100 is able to perform enhanced authenticationwithout interrupting the conversation. The hardware-specificauthentication may be instead of or in addition to the other enhancedauthentication techniques disclosed herein.

Still another embodiment of enhanced authentication utilized mediaaccess control (MAC) address. Again, the system 100 captures the MACaddress during the conversation and compares the MAC address to a MACaddress stored in the personal information 202 without interrupting theconversation. When the authentication module 212 determines a match,enhanced authentication is verified. The MAC address authentication maybe instead of or in addition to the other enhanced authenticationtechniques disclosed herein.

It is envisioned that the original personal information 202 is alsopopulated without interrupting initial conversations. Additionally, thevarious enhanced authentication techniques may be prioritized so thatthe order is set. Upon failure of the first enhanced authenticationattempt, a predetermined number of repeat attempts may be tried.However, rather than finalizing the process upon a failed enhancedauthentication attempt, the system 100 proceeds to attempt enhancedauthentication with the next parameter and so on until authentication issuccessful or all of the parameters have been exhausted.

As the interaction with the customer progresses, additional screenshots500, 600, such as shown in FIGS. 5A and 6A, respectively, may bepresented separately or on a split screen for review by the customerservice representative(s). In order to provide more clear informationregarding screenshot 500, FIG. 5B-D are provided to illustrate subpartsof screenshot 500. The details of FIGS. 5A-D are self-explanatory andthus, not described in great detail herein.

In order to provide more clear information regarding screenshot 600,FIG. 6B-E are provided to illustrate subparts of screenshot 600.

Referring now to FIG. 5B, the member dashboard information area 502 forestablishing and improving rapport with the customer has been modifiedand sized to still fit on a left side of the screen shot 500. Thedashboard area 502 has a header area 504 including the customer's name,job, photo if available, age, and address along with the ability to editsuch information. A notes area 506 shows previous notes and can receivenew notes. A household area 508 include family related details, surveyresults in the form of a satisfaction score, eligibility information,special status, and tenure as a customer.

A preferences area 510 of the dashboard area 502 illustrates theproducts reviewed by the customer, the rating for same, and a link tofurther see the details of the review. The preferences area 510 alsoincludes charted channel information, when the customer has Web, mobile,phone, and in-person contact available. A “whats going on” area 512allows the customer service representative to engage in small talk bypresenting the local time and current events in the geographic area ofthe customer. Effective small talk is not only helpful to overcome smallgaps in the conversation flow but fosters development of rapport.Similarly, the dashboard area 502 has an interests area 514 thatpresents known interests of the customer. Again, by knowing what thecustomer's interests are, the customer service representative is able tomore effectively interact with the customer.

Referring again to FIG. 3, the system 100 may generate, prioritize anddisplay future actions predicted by the customer's information andbusiness rules (step 1002). The screen shots 500, 600 of FIGS. 5A and 6Aare examples of the information presented to the customer servicerepresentative.

Referring now to FIGS. 5A-D, based upon the information gathered by thecustomer service representative, the integrated desktop programgenerates and displays additional information while prioritizing futureactions (step 1002 of FIG. 3). The customer service representativetypically reviews screenshots 400, 500, 600. Initially, during theinteraction with the customer, typically a call, the customer servicerepresentative reinforces the customers connection to the company bybeing familiar and dexterous with the details related to the customer.As the customer service representative navigates the various screenshotsand interacts with the customer, the customer service representativebegins to understand the larger context of the customer whileencouraging the customer to share their story and enter salient detailsinto the system 100. This process helps the system 100 and the customerservice representative to identify the customer's intent and needs.

Referring to FIG. 5C, the additional information for review by thecustomer service representative is shown in a products area 516 and alife plan area 518. The products area 516 provide a graphical summary ofrelevant products and services already provided to the client such as ahome loan, car loan, mutual fund or other savings plan (e.g., 529college fund), bank account information, investment information, andhealth information. The life plan area 518 creates a figure of merit 520for financial security based on the data related to the customer andpossibly other factors. The system 100 generates an “actual” reading ofthe index 520 based on the customer information. The customer servicerepresentative also inputs sentiment from the customer to help generatea “perceived” reading of the index 520. Additionally, goals and outlookof the customer, as identified by the customer service representative,are included in the life plan area 518.

Referring to FIG. 5D, an understand area 522 of screen shot 500 isillustrated. The understand area 522 helps the customer servicerepresentative enter, track and document interaction with the customerfor use during the interaction and subsequent interactions. Theunderstand area 522 includes a reason for the call and associated time,mood and interest indication. Current aspirations are also updated alongwith concerns and recent life events that the customer may have. Basedupon the interaction and review of the information, the customer servicerepresentative can enter details in a call notes section. Similarly, aninteraction synthesis and interaction history are included in understandarea 522. As can be seen, the system 100 presents a plurality of screensto the customer service representative at their workstation 90 so thatthe customer service representative can give and take information withthe system 90 while interacting with the customer to upsell andotherwise assist the customer to accomplish their goals. Once thecustomer becomes confident that the customer service representative isworking towards the customer's goals, confidence in the company andrapport with the customer service representative occurs.

Referring again to FIG. 3, at step 1003, the system 100 may alsogenerate and, prioritize and display a conversation plan 602 (see FIG.6B), which is part of screen shot 600 of FIG. 6A. The conversation planmay include one or more topics. Each topic may include, for exemplarypurposes only, a question for the representative to ask the customer, atopic to be raised, and/or a recent change to the customer's servicesand/or situation. Further, each topic displayed on the representative'scomputer may include one or more links, each link providing the abilityfor the representative to quickly access differentinformation/functionality. For example, if a topic is to ask about thecustomer's existing car insurance policy, the link may allow therepresentative to quickly and automatically open the customer's policy(step 1005). In yet another example, if the topic is to ask if thecustomer would like to initiate life insurance, the link may allow therepresentative to quickly and automatically access the ability togenerate and configure life insurance quotes. It is contemplated hereinthat the link may be a hyperlink (e.g., such as in web browsers) thatopens in the same “page”, the link may be a hyperlink that opens a new“page”, clicking the link may start a different program/application onthe representative's computer, or any other functionally equivalent orsimilar computerized transition mechanisms as known in the art.

For example, conversation plan area 602 of FIG. 6B illustrates aconversation plan for an in progress interaction between a customerservice representative and a customer. The customer is being helped witha $6,000 investment but in view of indications that a new baby had justarrived in the family, the system 100 was recommending that discussionrelated to life insurance and starting a 529 college saving fund bestarted for the new baby, Sam.

As the customer service transitions into the recommended topics andindicates such, the system 100 presents an additional suggestions andelements area 604 as shown in FIG. 6C. The suggestions and elements area604 provides talking points 606 and supporting dialog 608 for thecustomer interaction. The customer service representative can alsoeasily enter these points into the record of the interaction byselecting an “Add to Conversation” button 610. Of course, thistechnology is equally applicable to “online chat”, instant messaging,video conferencing and other forms of interaction. As the interactionproceeds, the system 100 provides additional information as the customerservice representative enters additional information about theinteraction. For example, a conversation support area 614 as shown inFIG. 6E is presented to the customer service representative to assistwith the discussions related to life insurance and 529 college savingsaccounts.

Referring to FIG. 6D, throughout the customer interaction, the customerservice representative is managing the $6,000 investment via the OptionsExplorer portion 612 of the screen shot 600. It is also envisioned thatas data is entered into the system 100 by the customer servicerepresentative, the screens 500,600 will change. For Example, FIG. 6Eillustrates a changed portion 620 of screen 600. Portion 620 helps thecustomer service representative discuss relevant offers, follow-up ontasks, and attend to housekeeping for the customer without introducingundesirable pauses in the interaction.

By discussing the customer's needs in view of their current lifesituation, the customer service representative guides the customer in adiscussion of recommended solutions, options and opportunities. Becauseof the assistance of the integrated desktop program running on thesystem 100, the customer service representative helps the customer thinkthrough concerns and possible objections. By making the customer feelempowered to decide on the course of action, the customer is willing andlikely to select solutions, products and services of the company thatbest address their needs and aspirations. The integrated desktop helpsthe customer service representative see a global view for the customerand respond when the customer requests assistance. By asking questionsto make sure that the customer service representative truly understandthe needs of the customer, a shared understanding of the requests andneeds is accomplished. From this point, the customer and the customerservice representative can engage in detailed tactical work, stillwithin the integrated desktop, to bring decisions to fruition and tasksto completion.

In order to complete the designed plan, future action may be required.The customer service representative uses the integrated desktop tocreate the future plan in a tangible and actionable manner. The customerservice representative passes along from the integrated desktop therelevant resources to support the customer in following their personalpath to financial security and accomplishing the plan goals. Milestones,deadlines and follow up with the customer are all entered into theintegrated desktop. After the interaction, the customer servicerepresentative follows up with the customer, upon prompting by theintegrated desktop, via the channel of the customer's choice, to delivertangible evidence of progress and provide support for taking therelevant next steps.

Referring still to FIG. 3, in one embodiment, and in some utilizations,based on information gathered and/or received during the phone call, anew conversation plan may be generated and displayed on therepresentative's computer (step 1004). For example, if the customercalled to cancel their life insurance because money is currentlylimited, a new conversation plan may be generated that includes a topicthat directs the representative to ask the customer if they would liketo reconfigure their other policies (e.g., auto insurance, homeinsurance) to lower the premiums.

Again, information gathered during the phone call is saved to system 100(step 1006). This information includes, for exemplary purposes only, anyinformation communicated by the customer to the representative (e.g., Iwould like to increase my auto insurance coverage in a few months), anyadditional policies that the customer enrolled in (e.g., adding homeinsurance policy), changes to policies that the customer is enrolled in(e.g., reconfiguring an existing home insurance policy), and/orfollow-up activities and/or conversations that may or may not becontingent upon information discussed during the phone call and/orclient enrollment and/or reconfiguration of the client's existingenrollment in services.

Referring still to FIG. 3, it is contemplated herein that, in one ormore embodiments, at any time in the process 100 of the customer'sinteraction, responsibility for the customer interaction as well as ascreen that may include the customer's information and/or theconversation plan, may be transferred from one representative to anotherrepresentative (step 1008). For example, if the customer requestsspecific details about life insurance policies in the customer's stateof residence, the call may be transferred to a specialist that isfamiliar with the questions and/or issues that the customer may present.In this example, a transfer button may be selected in the graphical userinterface (GUI) of the first representative, and automatically thecustomer's phone call may be transferred to the second representative,and the second representative's computer's GUI may include thecustomer's information as well as displaying possible insurance optionsthat the customer may be interested in. Further, it is contemplatedherein that the second representative may first be conferenced into thephone call, and after an introduction is made, the first representativemay exit the phone call.

For example, FIG. 7 illustrates a portion 700 of a screen shot presentedto at least the second customer service representative during a calltransfer. The portion 700 may be integrated into previous screensdiscussed herein or presented as part of a separate screen. The portion700 includes information to allow for determining the customer's status,last prompt, recent activities and why the interaction is beingtransferred. Upon getting up to speed, the second customer servicerepresentative can select the transfer call button 702. Referring toFIG. 8, an example of a pop-up call transfer synthesis area 800 isshown. Again, the call transfer synthesis area 800 may be automaticallyprovided to both of the involved customer service representatives uponselection of the call transfer option. The call transfer synthesis area800 includes the reason for the transfer and additional backgroundinformation about the customer.

As can be seen, it is recognized that the customer servicerepresentatives will have different skill and experience levels. Thus,the system 100 may display different conversation plan items based onthe skills, training and experience of the customer servicerepresentative. Additionally, the education and/or work history of thecustomer can impact the conversation plan/screens presented to thecustomer service representative(s). The techniques described herein areexemplary, and should not be construed as implying any particularlimitation on the present disclosure. It should be understood thatvarious alternatives, combinations and modifications could be devised bythose skilled in the art. For example, steps associated with theprocesses described herein can be performed in any order, unlessotherwise specified or dictated by the steps themselves. The presentdisclosure is intended to embrace all such alternatives, modificationsand variances that fall within the scope of the appended claims.

The terms “comprise”, “include”, and conjugations thereof are to beinterpreted as specifying the presence of the stated features, integers,steps or components, but not precluding the presence of one or moreother features, integers, steps or components or groups thereof.

Although the systems and methods of the subject invention have beendescribed with respect to the embodiments disclosed above, those skilledin the art will readily appreciate that changes and modifications may bemade thereto without departing from the spirit and scope of the subjectinvention as defined by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A computer-implemented method for enhancingverification of a customer during a conversation between a customer anda customer service representative of a company comprising the steps of:receiving and storing data related to the customer at a computeroperated by the company, wherein the data includes a customer name, acustomer address, a customer number, and at least one authenticationfield for at least one authentication parameter of the customer;commencing a first telephonic interaction between the customer and thecustomer service representative; capturing first authentication datafrom the first telephonic interaction and storing the authenticationdata in the at least one authentication field; commencing a secondtelephonic interaction between the customer and the customer servicerepresentative; displaying at least a part of the data on a workstationof the customer service representative as part of a plurality of screensbased upon the customer providing at least one of the customer name, thecustomer address, and the customer number; capturing secondauthentication data from the second telephonic interaction; performingenhanced authentication without interrupting the second telephoniccommunication by comparing the first and second authentication data; anddetermining local events based upon an address of the customer;displaying the local events on at least one of the plurality of screensfor the customer service representative to discuss with the customer;entering a personal event related to the customer acquired duringdiscussion with the customer; determining and displaying at least oneproduct or service for the customer service representative to discusspurchasing with the customer based on the personal event and the goal ofthe customer; updating the data based upon the interaction; and revisingthe screens based on the updated data.
 2. The computer implementedsystem as recited in claim 1, wherein the first and secondauthentication data attribute used to authenticate the customer is avoice sample.
 3. The computer implemented system as recited in claim 1,wherein the first and second authentication data attribute used toauthenticate the customer is a caller ID.
 4. The computer implementedsystem as recited in claim 1, wherein the first and secondauthentication data attribute used to authenticate the customer ishardware specific data related to a mobile device associated with thecustomer.
 5. The computer implemented system as recited in claim 1,wherein the first and second authentication data attribute used toauthenticate the customer is a Media Access Control (MAC) address. 6.The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the computer isoperated by the company.
 7. The computer-implemented method of claim 1,wherein the at least one authentication parameter is selected from thegroup consisting of a voice sample, a caller identification number,hardware-specific data related to a mobile device associated with thecustomer, and a media access control address.
 8. Thecomputer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the at least oneauthentication parameter is a plurality of parameters such that uponfailure of a first enhanced authentication attempt, a predeterminednumber of repeat attempts are attempted and if the enhancedauthentication attempts are unsuccessful, a subsequent lower priorityauthentication parameter is selected and attempted until enhancedauthentication is successful or all of the parameters have beenexhausted.